NO matter what people say, whether you are a player, a manager or a fan, you look at what games you’ve got coming up and what could be achieved.

NO matter what people say, whether you are a player, a manager or a fan, you look at what games you’ve got coming up and what could be achieved.

Liverpool have a decent run of matches now and there’s a great chance to get a lot closer to the top four. The Christmas period isn’t decisive but there are a lot of points up for grabs.

We’re hitting some form at a good time and I’d rather have our fixtures than what our rivals have got.

With so many teams struggling for consistency, there’s at least one if not two Champions League spots to be won this season. Doing some shrewd business in January to enhance the group will be crucial.

Before the window opens, there are 12 points to be won – starting with the visit of Aston Villa tomorrow.

Paul Lambert has got Villa well organised and they work ever so hard but their squad lacks a bit of quality. I don’t think their league position lies. They are difficult to break down but at the other end they lack goals.

It’s a strange situation with Darren Bent, who’s out of favour, with Lambert preferring to play Christian Benteke on his own up front. Benteke is a real handful and looks like he’s got a bright future. He has been their shining light so far along with Brett Holman.

With Luis Suarez back from his ban, I expect Liverpool to be too strong for them but we may need to be patient as I can’t see there being many goals in the game.